474 Views
7 Favorites
Uploaded by Swarthmore College Peace Collection on
Ask the publishers to restore access to 500,000+ books.
NOTE: This film contains images of victims of war.
This silent film begins with the following text on the screen:
“On August 30, 1965 a law was enacted in the U.S. making the destruction of a draft card punishable by five years in prison and a $10,000 fine.”
A demonstration on October 28, 1965, at the Federal Courthouse in New York City shows demonstrators holding signs and police among the crowd. The signs are in favor of burning draft cards and of ending the draft entirely. Images of newspaper articles about the protest and shown. Another protest on November 6, 1965, at Union Square in New York City. There are speeches, demonstrators holding signs, and close-up images of newspaper articles. As a group of men begin to burn their draft cards, someone sprays water from the audience and puts out the matches. The men use a new match book and continue burning their draft cards. Scenes from the Vietnam War are interspersed. The film ends with the following text on the screen: "The real crime is not burning this piece of paper. It is in fact the false belief that violence can determine what men believe. From such beliefs we hereby disaffiliate ourselves."